1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to a telephone substation apparatus and more particularly to an actuator and handset support which can allow a telephone substation apparatus to be used as either a desk or a wall unit.
2. Descripton of the Prior Art
For many years the telephone industry has recognized the desirability of manufacturing a telephone substation apparatus or telephone instrument which may be used as a desk unit or a wall unit. One of the problems encountered in designing such a telephone instrument is how to support the handset on the base. It is desirable that the handset rest on the base in the same position no matter whether the base is horizontal or vertical. However, in most telephone instruments the weight of the handset is the force that is used to maintain it on the base, and of course as the base shifts in position from horizontal to vertical, the direction in which the force acts also changes. Therefore, the type of handset support that operates best in one position may not be needed or may actually interfere with the use of the handset in the other position.
Further, since telephone subscribers are now allowed to purchase their own telephone instruments it becomes desirable from a retail standpoint to be able to offer a telephone instrument which can be either desk or wall mounted. This arrangement would be advantageous to the consumer allowing him to purchase a single telephone which can be used for example, in the kitchen or laundry room where telephones are typically wall mounted, or the bedroom or living room where the telephone is usually placed on a horizontal surface. Additionally, this is also an advantage to the manufacturer, negating the necessity for the manufacturer to design and produce two distinctly different telephones for a particular type of mounting.
In the past hookswitch actuators have been designed which operate in either a horizontal or vertical position, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,832, to D. R. Bonis et al and U.S. Pat. No. 3,818,150, to I. Kunimine. Typically, these actuators have been mechanically complicated demanding a great number of mechanical adjustments to work properly. Further, they required supports either molded to the telephone housing or installed on the hookswitch actuator to allow the handset of the telephone to be supported on the base when wall mounted. U.S. Pat. No. 3,073,911, to C. F. Matke et al, teaches a telephone set which is operable in either a vertical or horizontal position. A support hook is provided which can be adjusted out of the base to support the handset to the telephone base when wall mounted. The telephone in this case must be disassembled in order to accomplish the adjustment which typically requires a trained telephone serviceman to accomplish. In most cases a consumer with limited technical knowledge would not be able to perform such an adjustment.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved hookswitch actuator and handset support for a telephone instrument which will allow the telephone to be either desk or wall mounted.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a handset support hook easily adjusted by the telephone subscriber allowing the telephone to be alternatively used as a wall unit.